"A majority taken collectively is only an individual, whose opinions, and frequently whose interests, are opposed to those of another individual, who is styled a minority. If it be admitted that a man possessing absolute power may misuse that power wronging his adversaries, why should not a majority be liable to the same reproach?" - Tocqueville, Democracy in America

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Sunday, April 25, 2010

Hulu Selangor : death knell for talam-dua-muka politics?

It is now 11.21am on Sunday the 25th of April 2010. The people of Hulu Selangor are electing their new Member of Parliament. It is going to be either Zaid Ibrahim from Pakatan Rakyat or P Kamalanathan of the Barisan nasional.

I have written elsewhere about all the gifts which the Barisan Nasional government was going to dish out to the people of Hulu Selangor. And boy, wasn't I right!

A friend of mine actually suggested that all of us should become a professional "voters". He suggested that we all should move from a constituent to another like nomads. First we should search for a constituent with the oldest or sickest Member of Parliament. Or find one who is most likely to die. Then we move to that constituent. If possible, change our voting constituency too. Then we wait.

When the MP kicks the bucket, hallelujah, (ooops...I am a Muslim, I am not supposed to utter that word lest I would be confused and become a Christian tonight!) the gifts will start raining down like it is Christmas all year round.

This Hulu Selangor by-election must have had a record in the Guinness Book of Records when it comes to gifts. Just imagine. 50000 smackeroons each for 100 FELDA settlers!

The thing is this. Does the government really think that the people are all beggars? That the people are willing to sell their vote for money? Like UMNO reps at its General Assembly? Does the government really think everybody in Malaysia is like some of them?

Despite all the money, gifts and all the might of the government, straw polls and survey point to Zaid achieving a famous win in this Hulu Selangor by-election.

The people are actually tired of the antic of this government. When some of the so called leaders (the Muslim ones) clearly consume alcohol, they were prepared to assassinate Zaid's character by saying that he consumes alcohol and is a gambler. They even doctored a picture of Zaid supposedly holding a bottle of Jack Daniels! That is how low they are prepared to go.

When some of the top leaders of the BN were challenged to declare that they don't consume alcohol, none even dared to utter a single word!

The truth is that was a vile attempt at character assassination. And the full hypocrisy of it is nauseating! In Malay that is what we call talam dua muka!

What about the corruption, the abuse of power, the mistreatment of citizens, the murders of human beings, the detention without trial, the statutory rapes and almost every other sin under the sun committed by some people?

Hypocrite, that what they are!

As if to rub salt into the people's already gaping injury, there was also talks that this by-election is about Zaid versus Dr Mahathir! HahahAHAhahaHA... and the grand old man of UMNO, who at first said he wasn't going to HS did go there after all, trying to split hairs over his eldest son's directorship in a beer company. Apparently he joined that board of directors to help them diversify. Wow, how clever he is! He should head Khazanah Nasional then. Desperation breeds inventions I suppose.

And 1 Malaysia? It is not even worth talking about it. This is the mother of all hypocrisy!

Straw polls and independent surveys have shown that the Pakatan Rakyat will win this Hulu Selangor by-election. Even UMNO's top member (who obviously has more brains than all of them put together) has also said so.

If all the predictions come true, I wonder whether this will be the end of the talam-dua-muka politics that the Barsian Nasional is well known for?

I for one am so tired of being treated like some morons with the brain of an amoeba. When the truth is, I could see through their ugly schemes even when I am asleep!

I am sure Hulu Selangorians are way smarter than they are credited for by the government.

20 comments:

Sezhian
said...

High time for BN to discard old fashion tricks which are rather tasteless. Perhaps they could learn a thing or two from the professionals from PR. Even then, by GE13, its all too late. If i were one of them, i would have followed Zaid's style, a man with natural gift to offer the oppressed, justice.

There is too much money and threats being showered. The constituents especially in Felda and long houses are under tremendous pressures from threats as well as treats to deliver the seat to Jibby.

Tilling on land with no titles, depending on subsidies, money more than income for several years are too much and promise of more are just too much to reject.

Other tricks include paying off the headmen of Orang Asli to influence the rest. This is a proven tactic in East Malaysia. Sources say that doors are not opening for PKR campaigners. As well as early reports on lacking of 'pondok panas'.

Tun has become more senile when he said of his son ability to help San Miguel diversify. It's a common knowledge everything touch by his son will become bonker. Moreover he's just been appointed to the board on 1/9/2009 because of the money plundered from our nation.

It'll be a wonderful win for PR after those goodies & promises thrown at the voters. Tun Dr. Mahathir went to the 2 bukit's by election last time; BN lost both seat, means they'll lose this seat as well.

Prediction: Zaid will win by over 2k majority. It's beginning of the end of BN.

When the MP kicks the bucket, hallelujah, (ooops...I am a Muslim, I am not supposed to utter that word lest I would be confused and become a Christian tonight!)--------------------------------Hahaha!! my bro in christ...opps, someone may think that you r a christian even though you are a muslim..

Great article! I think one one the very fundamental thing BN has forgotten is that HS is no rural area..unlike some of the interiors of sabah and sarawak. tactics such as dishing out dole to buy vote would not work in HS. The folks in HS are educated ones and are not cocooned from the world. I believe BN has just wasted our tax money. I hope that PR will take this opportunity next week in Parliament to demand for an answer on who gave BN the authority to dish out money to the voters to gain their votes for this by-election.

This paragraph tickles me to laughter:"When the truth is, I could see through their ugly schemes even when I am asleep!"

That is exactly how I feel.

UMNO/BN is full of dirty tricks up their sleeves. I read from other blogs that they used Mat Rempits to intimate and provoke PKR supporters. The police and RELA goons guard the orang asli kampungs and timidate them. These orang aslis are so scared of the goons.

Not only did Zaid, the better candidate by far, lose but the level of dirty tricks that the ruling federal govt has sunk to is simply nauseating.

Just what sort of Prime Minister would dangle a RM3 million for the reconstruction of the Rasa Chinese Primary School without even bothering to veil the purpose - read "twisting of arms for votes" - of the money.

In his own words, Najib reportedly said:

“If we win this by-election, you can come to Kuala Lumpur the next day to look for me. I will write a personal letter to approve the money and it will be transferred to the school board’s account. If we lose, don’t have to come.”

Is Najib so ignorant of the Election Offences Act 1954? or was he so arrogantly confident that he could get away with it?

Then, as Kit Siang wrote, there is also the Kampong Hassan case, where Najib "promised the Chinese-majority voters in the area that the Barisan Nasional government would build 200 low-cost housing for them if the BN candidate wins the by-election".

So will the MACC or the EC do something about the two "election bribery offences"?

It would be poetic justice if indeed Najib is investigated and found guilty of the wrongdoings... and is jailed or fined enough to disqualify him as MP and PM!

(Which no doubt some would suggest may even be the ulterior motive of those - if they exist - who had put Najib up to the foul deed!)

whatever the ulterior motive - if there are any - I do hope Najib is made to answer for the RM3m Rasa Chinese Primary School and Kg.Hassan "election bribery offences".

Meanwhile, excuse me if I just cannot find enough cause to respect the human being who now holds the post of Prime Minister of Malaysia.

About Me

Art Harun believes that he is a failed government experiment, abandoned and left alone to roam the streets after all remedial efforts yielded no positive result. He calls himself a non-governmental organism, practices law for a living and tries very hard to play guitar, sing, race cars and write some stuffs to stay alive.